Tony Danza will be at the Kentucky Derby Saturday cheering on a very special horse -- one who was named after him.

"It's thrilling," said Danza. "Wish my father was around to see this - he was a horse player and this would have been big."

The “Who’s The Boss” star found out about Danza after the colt won the Arkansas Derby three weeks ago, Aron Wellman, president of Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners, which owns the horse, told ABCNews.com.

“Well, if the horse had been a bust, he wouldn’t have been too happy about it, but we lucked out and he’s a sensational horse and a legitimate contender for the biggest race in the world,” Wellman said. “So it sounds like [Danza] is pretty excited about it.”

PHOTO: Former athlete Tony Micelli (Tony Danza) seeks a better life for his daughter, Samantha, by accepting the job as housekeeper for Angela Bower, an advertising executive with a young son, on the 'Who's The Boss?'

Danza -– the horse, not the actor –- got his name in part because of his father’s name, Street Boss. The '80s TV show came up when staffers at Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners were brainstorming names in 2011.

“Because of Street Boss, the theme, ‘Who’s the Boss’ came up, but that name wasn’t approved,” Wellman said. “Then we came up with Tony Micelli, his character, and that was denied by the Jockey Club.”